Life

Miaozong Vindicates the Vagina From the time of the Buddha and throughout Zen history, women’s sexuality, aka the “pussy koan,” have been one of the more difficult problems for Zen monks and nuns. In 11th century China, the nun Miaozong (1095-1170) flashed a Zen monk with her naked, spread eagle body, giving quite the Pussy-shot to the monk Wanan. The ...

“Even if the sun rises in the west, the way of the bodhisattva is the same.” What is the way of the bodhisattva during this difficult time? One of my students asked me what I hoped to accomplish at the Women’s March on Washington. “We cannot know the outcome of our actions, we can only do the right thing one breath ...

When I was growing up, the government was good and life was simple. President Eisenhower was like a benevolent grandfather, and there were evil Communists to watch out for. Or so I thought. If I had been an American child of any color other than white, it might have looked differently. I might have seen my parents or siblings capriciously ...

Writing about the inspiring World Rivers Day at Adam’s request is a pleasure. To view the Hubble photos of the cosmos; to read of our geographies, mountains, lakes and plains–what joy to be with our greater body! September 27th this particular year marks World Rivers Day. It started in British Columbia 35 years ago, and there are now celebrants and ...

The Dog that Did Not Bark: Thoughts on the International Day for the Total Elimination of Nuclear Weapons By John Gendo Wolff Sensei I remember endless grasslands spreading out under the sky as the family car sallied over the Great Plains where I used to live when I was young. I felt free whenever we drove through the west-river country ...

BOOK OF SERENITY- CASE 12 DIZANG PLANTING THE FIELDS Dizang asked Xuishan, “Where do you come from?” Xuishan said, “From the south.” Dizang said, “How is Buddhism in the south these days?” Xuishan said, “There’s extensive discussion.” Dizang said, “How can that compare with me here planting the fields and making rice to eat?” Xuishan said, “What can you do ...

By Todd Hotai Watson When Adam asked me to write something to commemorate National Stepfamily Day, I wanted to say no. I thought it was because the topic didn’t really interest me, but the truth is that becoming a step parent has challenged my ego and challenged me spiritually more than anything else in my life. I was raised in a ...

Sometimes people are confused when they discover that even though I am a Zen priest in good standing I am also a practicing Jew. Although I am far from the only one of whom this can be said, I suppose it is unusual. The Rabbi at our local synagogue, Rabbi Aubrey Glazer, who is a serious scholar of Jewish mysticism ...

When the Wisdom of the Grandmothers is Finally Heard and Respected, the World Will Heal. (Hopi and Zen Prophecy) This month we have been stung by many disasters, none more heartbreaking than the image of a drowned three-year-old toddler. Face down, as if sleeping tenderly in the soft sand, his sad photo awakened the world to the plight of Syrian ...

A few days ago a young man in the area decided to end his life by ingesting prairie dog poison. This was not the common poison that simply thins the blood to the point where the animal (or person) bleeds to death; for that there is an antidote. The poison that young man chose to end his life with is ...

Yesterday, I received an e-mail from Adam, editor here at Sweeping Zen – a request to write something about this International Day of Charity. I have to say that I was not familiar with the International Day of Charity. I had to look it up on Wikipedia to get more information about it. I learned that it is a pretty ...

By James Myoun Ford Way back when he reviewed the Buddhist monk Stephen Batchelor’s lovely book “Alone With Others,” The Western Buddhist John Blofeld wrote an introduction praising the young monk scholar and his writing. Blofeld went on to say it was unfortunate that Batchelor did not touch upon the critical doctrines of karma and rebirth, but understood there is ...

transcribed talk by Robert Joshin Althouse Roshi given at ZLMC on June 7, 2015. (Intro) We have Robert Joshin Althouse talking to us today about a very complex subject, that’s so … it’s the water we are swimming in, so it’s hard to even know how racism is affecting the way we are and think. So I’m really happy that ...

To close the trilogy on the three cardinal forms of sentient suffering listed in Buddhist teachings as aging, sickness and death, I have chosen the gerund form of the second. My prior pieces on the process of aging, witnessed primarily as my own, and dying, primarily that of my brother in his last days of living, reinforced for me the ...

Sometimes I wonder if the greatest value of our Dharma practice is what it does to our ability to relate to one another. Could it be that all our practice is, in the end, a pretext for the truly great event: being together without our ordinary social minds? The reason we sit in silence without any of the customary social ...

About Sweeping Zen

Established in 2009 as a grassroots initiative, Sweeping Zen is a digital archive of information on Zen Buddhism. Featuring in-depth interviews, an extensive database of biographies, news, articles, podcasts, teacher blogs, events, directories and more, this site is dedicated to offering the public a range of views in the sphere of Zen Buddhist thought. We are also endeavoring to continue creating lineage charts for all Western Zen lines, doing our own small part in advancing historical documentation on this fabulous import of an ancient tradition. Come on in with a tea or coffee. You're always bound to find something new.

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